Landscapers allowed to display floral arrangements
City officials approved the request of the Panagbenga Landscapers Association, Inc. to utilize the Igorot Park for landscaping display and sell their wares from October 1-31, 2021 subject to the conditions that will be imposed by the concerned offices of the local government.
Under Resolution No. 507, series of 2021, signed by Mayor Benjamin B. Magalong, city legislators stated there is a need for the association to strictly adhere to the guidelines on the conduct of similar activities issued by the City Planning and Development Office and other offices to ensure orderly conduct of the activity during the pandemic which must be complied by the groups organizing such activities.
Among the guidelines to be complied by the organizers include the provision of feasible parking areas, necessary special business permit, compliance to national provisions on price tagging and compliance to the implementation of the minimum public health standards as to triage and physical distancing.
Further, the Panagbenga Landscapers Association, Inc. shall coordinate with the Cordillera office of the Department of Public works and Highways for the identification of the feasible parking areas, the group was also required to secure the necessary special business permits and the association shall comply with existing guidelines on price tagging and ensure the compliance of their customers and patrons to the implementation of the minimum public health standards.
The council tasked the City Environment and Parks Management Office (CEPMO) to submit a park plan on how to accommodate this proposed temporary activity in the Igorot Park.
The body recognized the conduct of the Panagbenga festival as an annual crowd-drawing event in the city celebrated with fanfare parades, Session Road in Bloom, landscaping display and competitions, market encounters, and other tourist and entrepreneur-related activities that had made the same one of the well-attended festivals in the country.
Since the issuance of various national and local guidelines governing the imposition of restrictions on the movement of people and health and safety protocols due to the Corona Virus Disease (COVID) 2019 pandemic, the council stipulated that mass gatherings including the Panagbenga festival and its related activities for the years 2020 and 2021 were cancelled and several sectors had been economically and psychological affected.
Earlier, the Panagbenga Landscapers Association, Inc., a Securities and Exchange Commission-registered organization that participated in the previous Panagbenga festivals, requested the city government to use the Igorot Park for a month to do landscaping display and sell their wares related to their major activity.
The council recognized the importance of providing the members of the association with alternative sources of livelihood for them to hurdle the ongoing challenges posed by the pandemic to their economic activities. — Dexter A. See
